Dr Belinda O'Sullivan
Applying theory to grow the regional medical workforce
Dr Belinda O'Sullivan is the Chief Strategy and Performance at Murray PHN and is an adjunct A/Prof with Monash and The University of Queensland. She has a background in physiotherapy, public health, rural health research and policy. She led the evaluation of the Monash rural medical program and has a background of working on the MABEL longitudinal study of Australian doctors where she developed national level evidence about rural training exposures, applied to policy. She has a background in participatory action research to build solutions, frameworks and generate engagement through a system thinking approach. She served as the Director Research and Evidence in the Office of the National Rural Health Commissioner and is a passionate advocate for applying research to real-world problems. Her key research background is focused on rural medical workforce training and rural multi-disciplinary models of care.
Dr Meredith Tavener
Getting from ‘what’s the matter’ to ‘what matters’: The value of qualitative methods
Dr Tavener has established an international and national reputation for rigorous and mindful approaches to interpretive research, and ethical approaches to participant involvement. She is a qualitative health researcher whose work delves into the why and the how of health behaviour in order to help effect positive change.
She is currently Senior Lecturer and Course Coordinator for ‘Qualitative Methods in Health Research in the School of Medicine and Public Health’ at University of Newcastle, she also facilitates training workshops on consumer and community involvement in health and medical research for Health Consumers NSW, reviews grant applications for Outside Opinion and conducts qualitative analyses on experiences of cancer for the Daffodil Centre. Dr Tavener has over 20 years of experience as a qualitative health researcher, conducting and advocating for authentic qualitative research as an integral part of implementation science. Her work builds on the importance of data and numbers to give context to the people that healthcare professionals are trying to help.
Dr Catherine Lees
Co-design: A useful method for achieving new rural service models
Dr Lees is the Director Integrated Projects and Partnerships at Murray PHN and Adjunct Professor of Rural Health at LaTrobe University. She is an experienced senior health service leader with a strong interest in strengthening rural health workforce through collaborative leadership, and innovative models of care. Cath is currently leading Victoria's Australian General Practice Training Workforce Planning and Prioritisation project on behalf of the Victorian PHN consortia. She is experienced at building opportunities through collaboration and developing partnerships between the health, education and community sector to benefit rural and regional communities. Cath shifted from Melbourne with her family in 2016 and lives in Echuca Moama.